Though Marcos de Niza’s volleyball season ended last week, it’s a good time to highlight their captain, Hailey White, who was the leader of the team all season.

White, a native Arizonan, is a 6-foot-tall middle blocker in her junior year. She has been playing on varsity since she was a freshman, but she entered high school more mature than most freshman do.

“She wasn’t a freshman when she came in,” head coach Melissa Yee said. “She came in more mature. I never thought she was a freshman.”

Yee also explained how White was immediately a hard hitter whose skills were ahead of the curve for a girl her age.

Yee isn’t the only coach who has nice things to say about White.

“She’s my girl,” JV coach Brianna Phillips said, “I wish I could have a team of just her.”

White is the vocal leader of the team. This can be seen on the sidelines, in between sets or at timeouts. During these moments she is talking to her teammates, giving them motivation.

“She shows a lot of heart, wears her emotions on her sleeve and wants to be the leader on the team.” Yee said “She knows how to coach each player.”

White is a leader on and off the court. She has been involved with the school’s student government since she was a freshman and is now the junior class president.

In her junior season, White has done more than just be a vocal leader. She has played 44 sets, accumulated 173 kills, 14 solo blocks, and 102 digs. White’s state rank per Maxpreps.com is No. 93.

White has had to change her game because her opponents know who she is and didn’t give her as many solo block opportunities as she was used to. This was not a problem for her though. Yee believes White overcame this problem because of how easily she can adapt to different scenarios.

“She’s coachable,” Yee said “That’s one of the good things about her.”

While the stats are an important part of the game, White’s favorite part is the excitement of the match.

“I like the rush you get,” White said, “with the rally and not knowing who’s going to get the point. You get this feeling like OK; you need to execute, you need to finish this rally to get the point before they do.”

White has been playing club volleyball since she was a nine-year-old. Her passion for the game goes beyond just playing in high school. Given her age, she can now have colleges come to her club matches to watch and recruit her. She hopes to continue to play at the collegiate level for San Diego State University. After college, White hopes to pursue a career in the criminal justice field so she can help others.

Yee said she has been honored to coach her for the past three years and can’t wait to have her for one more year.

“It’s been my pleasure to coach her,” Yee said, “It’s been a blessing for me.”

Yee also said that they have unfinished business to take care of next season after the team finished with a record of 11-17 this season.